Detecting water is very deep in the heart of the Earth thanks to quantum mechanics

According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, geologists have discovered that there is water at a record depth in the Earth's heart. This will allow a deeper understanding of some of the processes that occur on Earth.

The research team representing the University of Florida, USA, found that at a depth of 400-600km below the Earth's surface, water exists in the form of a mineral called brucite . Quantum mechanics has helped scientists discover this.

At a depth of 400-600km below the Earth's surface, water exists in the form of a mineral called brucite.

Experts noted that the new data was surprising, at least in two respects: first, no one had previously thought that water could be so deep; and second, brucite is considered a very well-studied mineral and unexpected scientists have such a thing. It is magnesium hydroxide and inside it contains water. Previous experiments have shown that at high pressure brucite is broken, which means that even at relative depth, it will release water so that water then returns to the Earth's surface.

However, through a series of quantum mechanical calculations, experts concluded that brucite could fall very deep in the ground without being destroyed for a long time. So far, experts cannot answer the question of how much water falls to a depth of about 500km, but they are certain that there is a certain amount of water at that depth.

The water in the Earth's crust affects the processes that occur on the planet, which is no less the impact of water on the earth's surface. Therefore, experts hope that their findings will help answer some questions about the above processes. Experts note that they still have to verify the finding with modeling and conducting new experiments.